Bone broth is a healing superfood that’s packed with minerals like calcium, magnesium, collagen, and gelatin that both nourish the body and support the gut lining. Making your own bone broth at home doesn’t have to be hard!

I started drinking bone broth when I was twenty and first discovered that I had gut issues. My mom would make me chicken bone broth and I would pack it up to bring it along to college. I made a lot of mistakes when I first started to try and transition to a healthier diet, but having broth was one of the things I really did right.

The benefits of bone broth

It helps to heal the intestinal lining.

The collagen and gelatin in broth help support and help the intestinal lining which makes it a great gut healing support. I really attribute bone broth to helping heal my gut!

It helps promote healthy hair, skin, and nails

The same nutrients also support the health of hair and skin and elasticity of the skin.

It’s a great way to start transitioning to eating meat

I’ve talked about my lifelong meat aversion on the blog before as a result of my gut health being so poor. The broth was my transition back to eating meat after years of disliking meat.

It’s a nutrient powerhouse that’s easy to digest

The broth is full of vitamins, minerals and amino acids that are practically already digested for you which is what makes it so great for those with gut issues.

It’s traditional food

Bone broth is how our ancestors made broth. They did not use cans, or cubes, or boxes. Bone broth is a traditional, properly prepared food!

How to make perfect gut healing broth every time (full recipe below)

Use the right kind of bones from a good source

This is crucial for a good quality broth that is gelatinous and actually tastes good. So, what do you use?

1.5-2lbs of soup bones

Beef shanks or soup bones

Chicken carcass w/ meat removed

Lamb soup bones

1/2 – 1 lbs of joint bones

Beef knuckle

Lamb kneck bones

Beef ankle

Chicken feet

As for sourcing bones, try and get bones that are grass-fed and pasture raised for the most nutrient dense broth. Many health food stores carry these options, as well as local farmers markets and CSA’s.

Roast the bones for flavor

If you’re using beef or lamb bones, roasting them adds a lot more flavor!

Add apple cider vinegar, veggies, and herbs

Adding about 1 tbsp of raw apple cider vinegar helps to pull the nutrients from the bones and is a step that you always have to include for perfect broth.

To add even more flavor and nutrients, add veggies and fresh herbs! To reduce waste, save vegetable scraps like the tops of carrots, pieces of onion, celery, leeks, and more and store them in the freezer to add to your broth.

Cook it low and slow for an extended period of time

For the minerals to really pull from the bones, you want your broth to cook slowly for a long time. For chicken, 24 hours typically works, but for lamb, beef, and bison, up to 36 hours can be a good option

Cool it down fast!

To avoid letting the broth sit out and reach room temperature to where bacteria can grow, I always cool my broth fast. I do this by adding it to a pot or metal bowl and placing that bowl into a larger vessel filled with ice (for me, that’s usually a big metal wok). By shocking the broth this way, you’re not diluting it with ice, which holds up the flavor and the concentration of the broth, while still cooling it quickly.

Enjoy a gelatinous, nutrient dense broth

You want your bone broth to look like jello when it’s chilled! This indicates that it’s rich in collagen. All you have to do to bring it back to liquid form is simply heat it.

How to store bone broth

Freeze it in silicone molds

If you want to have broth on hand for cooking or drinking in the future, pour the broth into silicone molds and freeze in the freezer. The frozen broth will keep for several months.

Store it in glass

If you intend to use your broth within the next few days, simply store it in glass Tupperware or a large mason jar. In my experience, I like to use up broth stored in the fridge in about 5 days.

Troubleshooting bone broth

“My broth didn’t gel!”

It’s always a bummer when you don’t get a gelatinous broth. However, there are still lots of nutrients in your broth! Here are some factors to consider for getting your broth to gel next time…

Was there too much water? Try using less water next time for more concentrated broth.

Did you use bones that have collagen? Try using more joint bones or chicken feet next time.

Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and it’s time to get to planning!

Back when I was in college and was working part-time as a waitress, Mother’s day was always one of the busiest days of the year. Though going out to eat can be fun, it’s also pretty hectic to go out with all of the crowds. Plus, there’s something special about getting together and making food in your own home with those that you love!

This year, we’re going to be hosting Mother’s Day brunch with both my mom and my mother in law at our new house, and I wanted to share some of my favorite recipes that are both Paleo & AIP that are great for springtime and Mother’s Day!

This paleo Mongolian chicken is a simple and flavorful takeout dupe. It’s whole30 and AIP friendly.

I’m always down for Asian flavors! So many of my favorite dishes are Asian inspired. In the Hoover household, we make teriyaki chicken close to once a week, and neither Daniel nor I complain about it. But who doesn’t like to mix it up every now and then?

My version of mixing it up usually comes from adding in a different protein, like switching out the chicken for beef. This Mongolian beef has been a staple around our house, and I always look forward to making it! It’s been a reader favorite here on the blog, but I got a few requests to make it a bit more cost effective with chicken instead of flank steak.

This paleo Mongolian chicken is simple to make, it mixes it up from just normal ol’ chicken, and it’s whole30 and AIP friendly as well!

The Ingredient’s You’ll Need For the Mongolian Chicken

Chicken Breast

You’ll simply slice chicken breast into thin stir fry sized slices. You can also use chicken thigh sliced thin if you prefer that as well.

Green onion

The green onion is one of my favorite parts of Mongolian beef and chicken! It adds flavor and texture for a low price and minimal preparation.

Coconut aminos & chicken broth

Coconut aminos is the soy sauce substitute in this dish, and chicken broth helps to add more body and flavor to the sauce.

Arrowroot starch

Arrowroot is the cornstarch alternative in this recipe. It helps to make the chicken crispy, and it thickens the sauce as well. I have not tried to use tapioca starch in this recipe, but it can often get gummy in recipes like this. I still recommend arrowroot starch over tapioca starch.

Notes

The photos of this recipe and all written content on my website are copyright protected and cannot be copied or shared. Please do not copy this recipe or photos and share it on your own website, Instagram, or other written materials. If you’d like to feature a photo in a roundup, please contact me. If you’d like to tell people about this recipe on social media, your own website, or elsewhere please link back to the recipe here rather than copy and pasting. Thank you so much!!

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These paleo lemon cookies are made with all real ingredients and heart-healthy olive oil! They’re the perfect sweet and tart treat to enjoy as a simple dessert.

Lemon desserts have always been popular in my family. I was way too preoccupied with all things chocolate to ever give the time of day to lemon, but soon learned the error of my ways once I started cooking. Lemon desserts are seriously delicious and are perfect for spring and summer time.

Lemon bars and lemon tarts are amazing but can be a little labor intensive if you just want a quick sweet treat. These olive oil lemon cookies are perfect for a simple treat when you’re craving something sweet but don’t want any fuss!

The Ingredients You’ll Need for the Olive Oil Lemon Cookies

Tigernut flour

Tigernut flour is a nut-free and grain free flour alternative, but almond flour will likely work as well.

Tapioca starch

You can also use arrowroot starch.

Gelatin

Gelatin helps to bind these cookies together. I have not tried to use any alternatives for this ingredient.

Olive oil

Olive oil in cookies? YES. It’s amazing! Olive oil in desserts tastes amazing and is a heart-healthy alternative to other options like canola oil. Plus, if you leave the glaze off of these cookies, the use of olive oil instead of coconut oil keeps these cookies coconut free!

Honey

Honey adds a subtle flavor to this recipe and helps the overall color and sweetness of the cookies. You likely can substitute maple syrup.

Lemon juice & lemon zest

Can’t do these without the lemon!

Optional- coconut butter & coconut oil

These help to make the glaze on top of the cookies. The glaze is optional if you want to simplify and keep it coconut free. The cookies are just as good without the glaze but

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with lightly greased parchment paper.

Using a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix well.

Stir in the olive oil, honey, lemon juice, and lemon zest and stir until a dough forms.

Form the dough into 8-9 into slightly flattened cookies and evenly space on the baking sheet.

Bake in the preheated oven for 8-9 minutes or until the cookies are fully cooked. Carefully transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool.

For the optional glaze, melt the coconut butter and oil over a double boiler until fully melted.

Stir in the honey and lemon juice and pour over the cookies.

Chill in the fridge for 15-20 minutes to allow the glaze to harden and serve topped with lemon zest.

Notes

For the tigernut flour, almond flour may be a potential swap if you tolerate nuts.

The photos of this recipe and all written content on my website are copyright protected and cannot be copied or shared. Please do not copy this recipe or photos and share it on your own website, Instagram, or other written materials. If you’d like to feature a photo in a roundup, please contact me. If you’d like to tell people about this recipe on social media, your own website, or elsewhere please link back to the recipe here rather than copy and pasting. Thank you so much!!

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These everything bagel and lox breakfast nachos are extremely decadent and fun! They’re made with sweet potato bagel chips and are a paleo and dairy free breakfast.

Oh yeah… we went there. I shared these everything bagel sweet potato chips recently, and was so excited by how much you guys loved them! So it’s time to take them to the next level with these everything bagel breakfast nachos.

These breakfast nachos combine all of the flavors that you would enjoy on a bagel with lox, but without an actual bagel. With sweet potato chips, smoked salmon, capers, lettuce, red onion, everything bagel seasoning, bacon, fresh herbs, and a dairy-free cream cheese topping, these are some seriously loaded nachos. The sweet potato bagel chips are a lot easier to make than a homemade paleo bagel and are an all-around more vegetable-forward version on a bagel.

This certainly isn’t an everyday breakfast, but it’s an amazing option for a special breakfast for something like a birthday or a holiday. Or you can just eat them for breakfast for dinner, or a seriously decadent snack.

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I'm Michelle Hoover. I'm a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, and I live in Dallas, TX.

After being diagnosed with Hashimoto's as a teen, I turned to nutritional therapy, a real food Paleo/AIP template, and lifestyle changes to help manage my autoimmune disease and heal my body naturally. Here, I share how to make living a healthy, healing lifestyle fun with real food recipes and lifestyle changes!

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